Thanksgiving By Ben Fronczek

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Thanksgiving 2013

Thanksgiving      By Ben Fronczek

Reading:  Luke 17:11-18 “Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy[b]met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

14 When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.

15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

Being thankful and grateful is as old as man itself (if not older). When I think back to those early sacrifices made to God, even back to the time a Cain and Abel in Genesis, weren’t those sacrifices meant to show God appreciation and thanks? I think so.

Colossians 3 12-17 the apostle Paul writes;  ” Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”   Among other things, Paul taught that we need to be grateful and thankful.

The following proclamation was made by Governor Bradford in 1623, 3 years after the Pilgrims settled at Plymouth;

To all ye Pilgrims,
Inasmuch as the great father has given us this year an abundant harvest of Indian corn, wheat, peas, squashes and garden vegetables, and has made the forests to abound with game and the sea with fish and clams, and inasmuch as he has protected us from the raids of the savages, has spared us from pestilence and disease, has granted us freedom to worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience; now I, your magistrate, do proclaim that all ye Pilgrims, with your wives and ye little ones, do gather at ye meeting house, on ye hill, between the hours of 9 and 12 in the day time, on Thursday November ye 29th of the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and twenty three, and the third year since ye Pilgrims landed on ye Plymouth rock, there to listen to ye pastor and render thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.

(If only our leaders today would make such a proclamation)
Later our 1st president, George Washington designated the day as one of our 1st national holidays.  This Thursday is Thanksgiving; a day where we like those early Pilgrims set aside time from our busy schedules enjoy a meal together with loved ones and give thanks to God. As I see it the word of God tells us that this should be a continual, daily, practice for His children.

Ephesians 5:19-20 tells Christians to “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, ALWAYS giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”    

And I Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Thankfulness is not so much about what it is that we have been given. It is rather an attitude, an attitude of gratitude, an attitude that we as believers should especially be familiar with. This is seen throughout scripture.

Last week as we studied Daniel 6, we read how some corrupt governors convinced the king of Babylon that a law should be made to honor him by making it illegal to pray to anyone else for 30 days. In response what did we see Daniel do? That’s right, he went to his room to pray as was his habit. But do you remember what it said concerning what he regularly prayed for?

Let me read it to you: Daniel 6:10“Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.”

It is a known fact that there are many blessing that come with having a attitude of gratitude: As we saw in our reading, it pleases our Lord who seem to appreciate the one leper that came back to thank Him for healing him.

It is a proven fact that those who adopt an “attitude of gratitude” as a permanent state of mind experience many health benefits. Healthcare professionals note  Grateful people may be more likely to:

–       take better care of themselves physically and mentally

–       They engage in more protective health behaviors

–       They get more regular exercise

–       They eat a healthier diet

–       They have improved mental alertness

–       They cope better with stress and daily challenges

–       They feel happier and more optimistic

–       They have stronger immune systems

–       They maintain a brighter view of the future

–       They are happier

–       Others like and appreciate them more

–       They are more optimistic

–       They are more spiritual

–       And less materialistic… and so much more!

We have seen those who have received much but are not thankful. They have an attitude of ingratitude. They are like the nine lepers who received the gift of healing but did not even take the time to say thanks.

Fulton Ousler, a famous author of many years ago, tells the story of his old Black nurse, Anna. He lovingly writes:

“She was present when his mother was born; she was there when I was born. I remember her, he said, as she sat at the kitchen table in our house, the hard old brown hands folded across her starched apron, the glistening black eyes lifted to the white-washed ceiling, and the husky old whispering voice saying, “Much obliged, Lord, for my vittles.” “Ann,” I asked, “What’s a vittle?” “It’s what you got to eat and drink, that’s vittles.” “But you’d get your vittles whether you thanked the Lord or not.” “Sure,” she said, “but it makes everything taste better to be thankful.”

After the meal she thanked the Lord again and then said, “You know, it’s a funny thing about being thankful … it’s a game an old preacher taught me to play. It’s looking for things to be thankful for. Many of them you pass right by … unless you go looking for them … Take this morning, I woke up and lay there wondering … what I got to be thankful for now. And you know what, I couldn’t think of anything to thank him for. … But then from the kitchen comes the most delicious smell that ever tickled my nose–coffee.’ Much obliged, Lord, for the coffee, and much obliged, too, for the smell of it.’ “

Years passed and Ousler grew up, left home, and learned some of the hard lessons of life. One day he was called to Anna’s bedside. She was dying. He noticed her old hands were twisted with pain. He wondered what she had to be thankful for now. Just then she opened her eyes, looked at all the people around her bedside, closed her eyes again and said with a smile, “Much obliged, Lord, for such fine friends.”

One day when Abraham Lincoln served as President of the United States, an elderly lady was ushered into his private office. Lincoln noticed that she carried a covered basket beneath her arm, and he inquired, “What can I do for you Madam?”
Placing the covered basket on the table the lady replied, “Mr President, I have come here today not to ask any favor for anyone, nor for myself. I simply heard that you were very fond of cookies, and I came here today to present you with a basket-full which I baked just for you!”

As he listened to the lady’s words, tears welled up in the President’s eyes and began running unchecked down his face. He stood speechless for a moment, then said, “My good woman, your thoughtful and unselfish deed moves me. Thousands of people have entered this office since I became President, but you alone are the first to come asking no favor for yourself nor somebody else!”

I wonder, if the Lord doesn’t sometimes feel much the same way as Abraham Lincoln did that day. He hears millions of requests and petitions with which we bombard Him with.  Yet, how often do we stop and take time to utter a few simple words of thanks for all He has already done for us?

For the rest of our time today I would like open things up and ask some of you to share something that you are thankful for. Let the next few minutes be a time of thanksgiving worshipping and glorifying God with your testimony

(HEAR TESTIMONIES) (Or if you are reading this jot a few things down that you are grateful for)

I believe God wants us to be happy. Now let me tell you something — Don’t wait to be happy. Don’t postpone happiness until your situation changes, or you have acquired a certain thing. If you cannot be happy now you will not be happy if you get this that or the other things; for happiness is not a matter of what you have, or what situation you are in. It is a matter of who you are, your attitude and how you respond to life.

Willian Authur Ward wrote “Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.”

If you are not content with less you will never be content with more. There are many who live in a world of, “If only.”  If only I had this…. If only this were different…. If only I could do that…. If only this had not happened in my life… Such people rarely find happiness or contentment.

It is with an attitude of gratitude you will find contentment and the peace of God.

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